Governance without morality, on the part of both the governing and the governed, is impossible. 

Yom Kippur Declarations

Rev. Lonnie C. Crowe 

We are now entering the 10 Days of Awe between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. Yom Kippur begins at sunset on October 4 and ends at sunset on October 5. 

Yom Kippur is the Day of Atonement. Let’s spend these days of awe meditating on what God is accomplishing in our lives through the atonement of Jesus Christ. Decare of the following over your life during this appointed time. 

Psalms 18:1-2: “I will love You, O Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; My God, my strength, in whom I will trust; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.” 

I will not place anything in all of creation above You, Lord, my creator and sustainer. 

Lord, I shall not use Your Name in a meaningless, derogatory, or facetious manner. 

I will respect the day set apart for Your worship.  I will respect the rights of others to worship You. 

I will honor the Godly heritage of believers in my family, my country and my church. 

I will hold fast to covenants and commitments in my life and the lives of others. 

I will speak life, health and peace over the lives of others. 

I will respect the rights and property of others. 

I will walk in truth because the truth will set me free. 

I will be thankful for all that the Lord has given to me. 

Shana Tovah!!  

(Happy New Year!) 

 

Lead Us Not into Temptation

By Rev. Lonnie C. Crowe

Matthew 6: 9-13: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one for Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.”

Remembering that the Lord’s prayer is a covenant prayer recognizing who God is as our provider, deliverer and sustainer, we recognize, also, that in covenant with us, He does not lead us into temptation, but He does deliver us from evil.

Satan is the tempter.

Satan tempted Eve.  Genesis 3:1-6: Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, "Has God indeed said, `You shall not eat of every tree of the garden'?'' And the woman said to the serpent, "We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, `You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.' '' And the serpent said to the woman, "You will not surely die.   "For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.'' So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate.

Satan tempted the woman with what he, himself, wanted, to be God. She, in turn, brought the temptation to her husband.  

Isaiah 14:12-14: "How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How you are cut down to the ground, you who weakened the nations!  For you have said in your heart: `I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will also sit on the mount of the congregation on the farthest sides of the north; I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High.”

Satan tempted Jesus. Matthew 4: 1-11 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry.  Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, "If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.'' But He answered and said, "It is written, `Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.' '' Then the devil took Him up into the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down. For it is written: `He shall give His angels charge concerning you,' and, `In their hands they shall bear you up, lest you dash your foot against a stone.' '' Jesus said to him, "It is written again, `You shall not tempt the Lord your God.' '' Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. And he said to Him, "All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me.'' Then Jesus said to him, "Away with you, Satan! For it is written, `You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.' '' Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him.”

Satan tempted Jesus with the super hero-worship of man.  Jesus is greater than Superman, Batman, Spider man and all the other heroes of this world.

Satan tempts us.  Paul warned the Corinthians.  2 Corinthians 11:3-4::But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.  For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted, you may well put up with it. “

Progressive and Replacement Christianity preach another Jesus.

Acts 5:3: But Peter said, "Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and keep back part of the price of the land for yourself?

John 13:2: And supper being ended, the devil having already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray Him.

Know the difference between temptation and testing.

Temptation: the desire to do something, especially something wrong, unwise or foolish.

Testing: measures the quality, performance of something or someone.

God is omniscient. He already knows whether or not we will pass the test. We are the ones who need to know. Ecclesiastes 3: 18.  I said in my heart, "Concerning the estate of the sons of men, God tests them, that they may see that they themselves are like beasts.''

Psalm 139: 23-24: Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me, and know my anxieties; And see if there is any wicked way in me, And lead me in the way everlasting.

Ways that God may test us: (Notes from Tom Shephard, “7 Examples of Testing in the Bible.”.

Patience: Trials and tribulation can be a test of patience. The Lord has a timing for fulfilling His plans and purposes. Often His plans take much longer than we expect. Job’s life was a test of patience. In fact the Bible says in book of James, “Remember the patience of Job.”

Faith: Trials test of our faith. Do we believe in God even in the midst of pain and suffering? Do we believe in the promises of God even when everything looks impossible? Do we trust in God even if He does not deliver us? Do we trust in God even when we do not understand His ways and working in our lives? Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego were tested and showed their faith.

Love: Trials can test our love. They can reveal whom or what we love most in our lives.  John 21:15-17 So when they had eaten breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, "Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me more than these?'' He said to Him, "Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.'' He said to him, "Feed My lambs.''  He said to him again a second time, "Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?'' He said to Him, "Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.'' He said to him, "Tend My sheep.'' He said to him the third time, "Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?'' Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, "Do you love Me?'' And he said to Him, "Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You.'' Jesus said to him, "Feed My sheep.”

Endurance: Trials can be a test of our endurance. How much are we willing to endure for the Lord? Will we give up easily from following the Lord? Will we endure till the end? The life of Paul is an example of endurance.

2 Corinthians 11:25-28: From the Jews five times I received forty stripes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods; once I was stoned; three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I have been in the deep;  in journeys often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils of my own countrymen, in perils of the Gentiles, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; in weariness and toil, in sleeplessness often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness besides the other things, what comes upon me daily: my deep concern for all the churches.”

Lord, You deliver us from Evil.

Psalm 71: Deliver me, O my God, out of the hand of the wicked, Out of the hand of the unrighteous and cruel man.

James 4: 7.  Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.

 

Prayer for deliverance:

Psalm 71: Deliver me, O my God, out of the hand of the wicked, Out of the hand of the unrighteous and cruel man.

 

All of this so the world will see that “Thine is the power and the glory forever and ever.”

 

 

Give Us This Day

Reverend Lonnie C. Crowe

 

"In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. for Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.”

(Notes from the One New Man Bible:) “We can only speak this way to God, saying, “You must” as Yeshua is teaching, when we are in a covenant relationship with Him.”

Through the covenant we have with God, sealed with the shed blood of Jesus Christ, each of us is saying, “Everything I have is Yours.  God responds, “Everything I have is yours.”

(Notes from the One New Man Bible:) “We are to appropriate His promises as well as keep His commandments. This means salvation, but more than that, it brings in all of His promises.  This means that healing is salvation in a physical sense, and deliverance is there as well.”

What is our daily bread?

What is necessary for our existence?

What is our source?

Remember Philippians 4:19: And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

Food:

Exodus 16:14-15,31,35: ‘And when the layer of dew lifted, there, on the surface of the wilderness, was a small round substance, as fine as frost on the ground. So when the children of Israel saw it, they said to one another, "What is it?'' For they did not know what it was. And the house of Israel called its name Manna. And it was like white coriander seed, and the taste of it was like wafers made with honey. And the children of Israel ate manna forty years, until they came to an inhabited land; they ate manna until they came to the border of the land of Canaan.’

Psalm 37:25: “ I have been young, and now am old; Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, Nor his descendants begging bread.”

Water:

Exodus 17:4-6: So Moses cried out to the Lord, saying, "What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me!''  And the Lord said to Moses, "Go on before the people, and take with you some of the elders of Israel. Also take in your hand your rod with which you struck the river, and go.  "Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock in Horeb; and you shall strike the rock, and water will come out of it, that the people may drink.'' And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel.

Genesis 21:15-19: And the water in the skin was used up, and she placed the boy under one of the shrubs. Then she went and sat down across from him at a distance of about a bowshot; for she said to herself, "Let me not see the death of the boy.'' So she sat opposite him, and lifted her voice and wept.  And God heard the voice of the lad.

Then the angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said to her, "What ails you, Hagar? Fear not, for God has heard the voice of the lad where he is.  "Arise, lift up the lad and hold him with your hand, for I will make him a great nation.'' And God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water. Then she went and filled the skin with water, and gave the lad a drink.

Air:

Genesis 2:7: And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.

Job 33: 4:  The Spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the Almighty gives me life.

Shelter:

Psalm 27:5. For in the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion; In the secret place of His tabernacle, He shall hide me; He shall set me high upon a rock.

Psalm 91:1-2: He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.  I will say of the Lord, "He is my refuge and my fortress; My God, in Him I will trust.''

God provides not only our physical needs, but our spiritual needs as well.

Jesus is our spiritual food:

John 6:32-35: Then Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but My Father gives you the true bread from heaven. "For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.'' Then they said to Him, "Lord, give us this bread always.''  And Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.

Jesus is our spiritual water:

John 7:37-39: On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink.  "He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.''

Jesus is our spiritual breath:

Genesis 2: 7.  And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.

John 20:22. And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit.”

Jesus is our spiritual shelter:

Proverbs 18:10. The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe.

Never forget Matthew 6: 26.  "Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?

Praise God!  My God shall supply all my need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

God’s supply never runs out.

Lamentations 3:22-24: Through the Lord's mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not.  They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.  "The Lord is my portion,'' says my soul, "Therefore I hope in Him!''

 

Some musings from a new octogenarian (I love that word.): 

In scripture, 80 represents freedom from oppression. Moses was 80 when God called Him to lead the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt.  God is calling us “old guys” to demonstrate the freedom of living for Jesus.

 8 is the number of new beginnings.  10 is the number of completeness and divine order.  8 X 10 = the beginning of a new level of relationship with God.  In this new beginning, we must rely on Isaiah 40: 31: “But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.”

If we choose, we can forget the hair dye. Proverbs 20: 29: “The glory of young men is their strength, and the splendor of old men is their gray head.”

This morning, I thought with a chuckle: “Yesterday, on my birthday, I was 80.  Today, I am 80+.

 

 

You Are the Light of the World

Rev. Lonnie C. Crowe

Matthew 5:14-16 "You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. "Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.:

Jesus said that we, His people, are to shine like a city that is set on a hill that cannot be hidden.

And the world, including all of creation, is watching us and waiting for us to step forward and take our places as the sons of God. (Romans 8:19).

The sons of God must stand in unity against the forces of the enemy of our souls.  The turmoil in our culture is manifested in the political, but its roots are in the spiritual.  Only the sons of God can battle in the spiritual realm.

"Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.

 

Notice  that the center candle the only candle that is the candle stick.  It is the vine.  The other candles are branch off the vine.  7 is the number of God.  6 is the number of man.  We cannot accomplish any thing without God. Our light does not shine without Him.

How can we make our little light shine?

Light dispels darkness.

Darkness is not the opposite of light.

Darkness is the absence of light.

 

Romans 12:2.  And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.

(Matthew 22:37)

You shall love your neighbor as yourself. (Matthew 27:39)

Romans 8:38-39:For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Galatians 5:22-23:   the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,

gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.

Jeremiah 29:11:  For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.